By Dr James Brown
Australian fathers are often told to “step up,” be more hands-on, more emotionally present, and more of an equal partner at home.
Many fathers are already responding to that call in identity and intention.
What holds them back is the bind of provision: economic pressure, workplace policies, and gender norms that still define “good fathering” as breadwinning first.
Fathers want to care and most believe they can
The State of the World’s Fathers: Australia 2026 report (led by Western Sydney University, with The Fathering Project as the Australian partner) surveyed 533 Australian parents and conducted 25 in-depth interviews.
Its central finding challenges a common stereotype, being that fathers are less involved because of a lack of willingness.
In this study, fathers reported strikingly high confidence and enjoyment in caring.
These are encouraging findings.
Confidence is one of the foundations of involvement.
If men feel capable and trusted, they are more likely to step into the day-to-day work of caring.
But willingness and capability are not the same as opportunity. And that’s where systemic factors impact negatively for fathers.
The real barrier is the squeeze of time, money, and work
For example, in this study, Gen Z fathers were more likely than older dads to endorse the view that a father’s sole responsibility is to provide financially (72 percent, compared with 57 percent among Gen X fathers).
So while public conversation encourages men to become more emotionally available and hands-on, many young fathers are still aligning with a traditional message of their value being in financial provision.
Or is this really the case? Could social and economic pressures, such as the ever-present cost-of-living pressures in today’s zeitgeist, be seen to be locking young fathers into a provider role?
The report documents constraints that would pressure any household:
- Only 19 percent of parents reported having enough time for caregiving responsibilities.
- 47 percent of fathers reported struggling to balance their job with care responsibilities.
- 72 percent of parents worried constantly about their family’s financial future.
These socioeconomic pressures don’t only limit time; they also shape roles.
A particularly important finding is that perceived financial insecurity – not income alone – predicted stronger endorsement of traditional gender norms.
When families feel precarious, many retreat into what seems most stable, often being the safety of more traditional gender roles.
In essence, couples are not choosing to be more ‘traditional’.
It means they’re often choosing what feels survivable.
The “care tax” locks families into unequal patterns (even when no one wants it)
This leads to families feeling locked into what the report describes as a “care tax”: the cumulative personal and financial costs families pay to keep care functioning.
These costs are widespread – less time for self, delayed purchases, reduced savings, disrupted careers.
Both mothers and fathers report personal sacrifice, but the direction differs in ways that reinforce the provider bind:
- Women were more likely to reduce work hours because of caregiving (68 percent vs 56 percent).
- Men were more likely to work overtime (70 percent vs 53 percent).
Those patterns become self-reinforcing.
Mothers reduce their hours, making them the default caregiver and household organiser.
Fathers’ increased hours make them more financially “essential” and less physically available at home.
Over time, it can start to feel like there is no alternative.
We’re shaping the next generation of fathers long before adulthood
Importantly, the provider script doesn’t begin when men become dads, or when, as dads, they encounter financial pressures.
It begins in boyhood – in what boys are taught to do, and what they’re excused from learning.
The report found many fathers and mothers did not consider domestic tasks such as cooking and cleaning to be important skills to be learned.
These are not trivial attitudes.
Skills shape competence, competence shapes confidence, and confidence shapes behaviour.
Boys who grow up without everyday domestic skills can become men who want to be involved fathers but feel clumsy and easily displaced at home.
The report captures that tension: 38 percent of men agreed they “never seem to get it right” when doing care or housework at home.
Coming full circle, it is understandable that in this displacement, they might choose the safety of a traditional provider norm.
What would actually help fathers “step up” in real life?
Australian fathers want to care.
They understand the need for their involvement in the lives of their children.
What stands in the way is not a failure of will, but a failure of systems.
At The Fathering Project, we are very serious about father involvement, and the need for action within this space is imperative.
The levers to pull within the system are clear:
- Employers. Flexible work needs to be a normal, career-safe option for men, not an exception. Fathers also need cultures where taking leave and leaving on time doesn’t quietly signal a lack of commitment.
- Government. Parental leave must be clearly communicated, genuinely accessible to fathers, and financially viable for families to take. Affordable childcare isn’t just a “women’s workforce” issue – it’s father involvement infrastructure.
- Health and Community services. Fathers need visible, father-specific pathways into support early, including peer groups and routine screening for paternal distress. Men can’t rely on networks they don’t have, and many fathers report they were never even offered support designed for them.
It is time for systems, services, and government to step up.
Dads are stepping in, but without wrap-around, holistic support, we will continue to repeat outdated patterns and norms that fail to meet the needs of both fathers and children to truly thrive.
Dr James Brown is a Clinical Psychologist, Fatherhood Researcher, and Board Member of The Fathering Project, the Australian partner organisation for the 2026 State of the World’s Fathers study.
